Marshall Legacy Institute 2011 Annual Report

This past year has been one of accomplishment and growth for the Marshall Legacy Institute. We provided critically needed assistance to some of the most landmine-affected regions of the world. Our Mine Detection Dog Partnership Program (MDDPP) put 22 lifesaving dogs into service in Afghanistan, Angola, and Sri Lanka. Our Children Against Mines Program (CHAMPS) engaged thousands of American schoolchildren on an important global humanitarian issue and linked them with their peers in mine-affected communities. Dozens of landmine survivors received medical assistance and vocational training through our Survivors’ Assistance programs in Afghanistan, Iraq, Vietnam, and Yemen, while at-risk populations in Bosnia-Herzegovina received Mine Risk Education through an innovative partnership with the Fantomi Sitting Volleyball team comprised of inspirational landmine survivors. History has shown that the end of violence cannot be the beginning of peace when chaos, desperation, and fear prevail. Landmines, which may lie hidden beneath the soil for decades, force families to make intolerable decisions. Parents weigh the possibility of injury or death from mines as they tend the land to place food on their tables. Children risk life and limb as they walk to school or play in the fields. While threatening hundreds of thousands daily, landmines also inhibit access to critical resources, prevent the return of the internally displaced, and impede agricultural production and infrastructure development, thereby stifling the economic activity that leads to peace and stability. MLI’s work in war-torn countries offers sustainable solutions that provide hope and empowerment for a brighter future. Through cooperation and partnership with the U.S. Government, international mine-action organizations, indigenous demining groups, and concerned citizens, we continue to help eliminate the humanitarian dangers and destabilizing effects of landmines and other explosive remnants of war. Together, our efforts can replace landmines and fear with opportunity and hope. As we enter 2012, I look forward to continue building upon the generous public and private support that enables MLI to help create a better and safer world free of landmines

Marshall Matz

Marshall Matz served as General Counsel to the Senate Select Committee on Nutrition and Human Needs and also as Special Counsel to the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry before becoming Washington counsel for the American School Food Service Association.https://egrove.olemiss.edu/icn_ohistories/1082/thumbnail.jp

Math in Motion

Everything we know about the universe rests on the foundation of mathematics. Somehow, though, the magic of mathematics – the true power of numbers and their beautiful wildness – gets lost in math class. Children, our most magical thinkers, get turned off math in grade school and miss out on a language through which they could learn to read and change the world. VCU Math In Motion will generate a creative, dynamic STEM education initiative within the Richmond community using an innovative curriculum and a customized mobile unit to bring the beauty of math to Richmond region school children in grades 5-9, through partnerships across VCU and within the local school system

Climate Change & Food Security Vulnerability Assessment. Toolkit for assessing community-level potential for adaptation to climate change

This CCAFS Working Paper presents a participatory methodology that has been designed to provide organizations with the tools to understand the interrelations between climate impacts, food systems and livelihood strategies at the local level, while taking into consideration traditional /indigenous knowledge of the participating community. The toolkit developed applies a multidimensional view of the vulnerability of livelihood strategies to climate change, with a focus on differentiated access and entitlements to livelihood resources and food for different groups within a locality or community (often determined according to gender, ethnicity and socioeconomic class). It includes step by step instructions on how to implement participatory tools that were adapted to answer the following questions: Why are people vulnerable? How are they vulnerable to climate change? What consequences does this have for their food security? Implementing this methodology will provide an initial understanding of the local context and vulnerability profiles, which, combined and triangulated with other sources of information (meteorological data, socio-economic indicators etc.), feeds into the process of identifying adaptation measures

Experimental Study on Demountable Shear Connectors in Composite Slabs with Profiled Decking

yesThis paper presents an experimental study on shear strength, stiffness and ductility of demountable shear connectors in metal decking composite slabs through push-off tests. Twelve full-scale push-off tests were carried out using different concrete strength, number of connectors and different connector diameter. The experimental results showed that the demountable shear connectors in metal decking composite slabs have similar shear capacity and behaviour as welded shear studs and fulfilled the minimum ductility requirement of 6mm required by Eurocode 4. The shear capacity was compared against the prediction methods used for the welded shear connections given in Eurocode 4, AISC 360-10, ACI 318-08 and method used for bolted connection in Eurocode 3. It was found that the AISC 360-10 method overestimated the shear capacity while the ACI 318-08 method underestimated the shear capacity of specimens with single shear connector per trough. The Eurocodes method was found to provide a safe prediction for specimens with single and pair demountable connectors per trough. In addition, prediction methods given in both AISC 360-10 and ACI 318-08 for welded shear studs overestimated the shear capacity of specimens with 22 mm diameter demountable connectors that failed in concrete crushing.PhD work from EPSRC studentshi

Mortality and sexuality after diagnosis of penile cancer: A participative study

Objectives: Survival for penile cancer is high but treatment can have a long-term detrimental effect on urological function and quality of life. Due to its rarity, it is difficult to include men with penile cancer in research about their condition. The aim of this study was to identify aspects of their diagnosis and treatment that they would want explored in penile cancer research.    Design: The study employed a participative, mixed-qualitative-methods design; it utilised focus groups and patient-conducted interviews, combined into a one-day ‘pilot workshop’. The data were analysed using framework analysis.   Results: ‘Early signs and seeking help’, ‘disclosure of a ‘personal’ cancer’ and ‘urological (dys)function’ emerged as three key themes.   Conclusions: Men with penile cancer want research about their condition to explore early signs and helping seeking, disclosure of a ‘personal’ cancer and urological (dys)function. Research could use methodologies that include consideration of the chronological narrative of the experiences of men with penile cancer, which could be applied in clinical practice by integrating opportunities to explore specific aspects of their experiences at appropriate times along the care pathway

Rural to Urban Migration and Changes in Cardiovascular risk Factors in Tanzania: A Prospective Cohort Study.

High levels of rural to urban migration are a feature of most African countries. Our aim was to investigate changes, and their determinants, in cardiovascular risk factors on rural to urban migration in Tanzania. Men and women (15 to 59 years) intending to migrate from Morogoro rural region to Dar es Salaam for at least 6 months were identified. Measurements were made at least one week but no more than one month prior to migration, and 1 to 3 monthly after migration. Outcome measures included body mass index, blood pressure, fasting lipids, and self reported physical activity and diet. One hundred and three men, 106 women, mean age 29 years, were recruited and 132 (63.2%) followed to 12 months. All the figures presented here refer to the difference between baseline and 12 months in these 132 individuals. Vigorous physical activity declined (79.4% to 26.5% in men, 37.8% to 15.6% in women, p < 0.001), and weight increased (2.30 kg men, 2.35 kg women, p < 0.001). Intake of red meat increased, but so did the intake of fresh fruit and vegetables. HDL cholesterol increased in men and women (0.24, 0.25 mmoll-1 respectively, p < 0.001); and in men, not women, total cholesterol increased (0.42 mmoll-1, p = 0.01), and triglycerides fell (0.31 mmoll-1, p = 0.034). Blood pressure appeared to fall in both men and women. For example, in men systolic blood pressure fell by 5.4 mmHg, p = 0.007, and in women by 8.6 mmHg, p = 0.001. The lower level of physical activity and increasing weight will increase the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. However, changes in diet were mixed, and may have contributed to mixed changes in lipid profiles and a lack of rise in blood pressure. A better understanding of the changes occurring on rural to urban migration is needed to guide preventive measures

Gender, age and the MBA: An analysis of extrinsic and intrinsic career benefits

Against the background of an earlier UK study, this paper presents the findings of a Canadian based survey of career benefits from the MBA. Results indicate firstly that gender and age interact to influence perceptions of career outcomes (young men gain most in terms of extrinsic benefits of career change and pay), and secondly that both men and women gain intrinsic benefits from the MBA. However, intrinsic benefits vary by gender: men in the study were more likely to say they gained confidence from having a fuller skill set while women were more likely to say they gained confidence from feelings of self worth; men emphasised how they had learned to give up control while women argued that they had gained a ‘voice’ in the organization. The role of the MBA in career self- management and the acquisition of key skills are examined as well as the implications for the design of programmes in meeting the varied need of men and women in different age groups

Individual Variation In The Vigor Of Self Pollen And Selfed Progeny In Hibiscus Moscheutos (Malvaceae)

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/141525/1/ajb213784.pd

Project Management in the Oil & Gas Industry - A Bayesian Approach

A reliable ‘Estimate at Completion’ from the early stage of project execution is essential in order to enable efficient and proactive project management. The non-repetitive and uncertain nature of projects and the involvement of multiple stakeholders require the use and integration of multiple informative sources in order to provide accurate forecasts. Moreover, in the Oil&Gas industry projects are characterized by a high level of complexity and financial impact. The paper aims at multiple objectives: introducing the need for the identification and utilization of all the available knowledge in order to improve the forecasting process; developing a Bayesian approach in order to integrate the diverse knowledge sources; exploring the integration of data records and experts’ judgment related to the ongoing project; exploring the integration of data records related to projects completed in the past and to the ongoing project and finally developing a Bayesian model capable of using three different knowledge sources: data records and experts’ judgments related to the ongoing project and data records related to similar projects completed in the past. The model has been tested in a set of large and complex projects in the Oil&Gas industry, in order to forecast the final duration and the final cost. The results show a higher forecasting accuracy of the Bayesian model compared to the traditional Earned Value Management (EVM) methodology